Toccata have done not just well but handsomely
by Tovey. Their CDs of the Symphony and the Cello Concerto started
at the most ambitious end of his catalogue. The label now move
to chamber and solo projects.

The op. 1 work is a big four movement Brahmsian
piece dedicated to Tovey’s teacher Parry. It is a lovely rounded
piece with a strong suspicion that in his head Tovey was hearing
a full-blown Double Concerto à la Brahms. In fact the surgingly
eruptive lines and vertiginous excitement of the Brahms Double
and the Piano Concerto No. 2 are rarely far away from this leonine
work. It’s extraordinarily confident for an op. 1. From eight
years later comes the slightly shorter Style Tragique trio
for the same forces. This began life as a trio for piano, clarinet
and horn in 1895 and was broadcast in this form in the 1950s
by Alan Civil, Jack Brymer and David Parkhouse. It is in three
movements unlike the four of the op. 1 work. Its smiling and
self-possessed central Largo recalls the calmer moments
in the Brahms Piano Concerto No. 1. There is less feeling, with
this work, of an orchestral piece manqué. The notes - which
are lavishly illustrated with music examples - are by Peter
R Shore. Mr Shore has laboured long and hard with the Tovey
legacy to bring about performances and recordings. He can take
pride in his success and in the pleasure these recordings have
brought to many unsuspecting listeners.

This is a composer you need to discover if the
references above already appeal to you. Tovey brings a mature
originality of ideas which the Brahmsian manner does nothing
to blunt. It is a pleasure to report that there is already talk
about successors to this disc to include the two string quartets.
Of course the most ambitious prize would be a full recording
of the opera The Bride of Dionysus.

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